Help..way off track 5 years out? Anyone else had this?

I am about 5 and 1/2 years out.  I had initially gotten to my goal but then over the last year I have gained about 40 pounds back...I am miserable.  I let the carbs back in and I know that I need to start over.   I am going to start with the 5 day pouch test starting Saturday, since the weekend will be easier to be on the liquid phase.   But I would love to talk to someone to see that you can get back there again...I am just so upset with myself.  I said I would never be in the plus size clothes again and here I am...I could use any help and/or support out there.  Thanks friends.  

I'm not there - I'm almost 3 months out from my surgery but 1 thing I'd like to mention, is you need to be nice to yourself.  Don't beat yourself up over this.  It sounds like you have a plan, stick to the plan and it will happen again.  Believe in yourself, be nice to yourself, remember to reward yourself when you do well.  Coming off carbs is hard, don't get discouraged.  It happened once, it will happen again.  We're all here for you.

thank you...

I agree with the "don't beat yourself out" idea...you've come hear for support and help...that's a good thing!  As someone who has also started a trend upwards, I can only offer what I have tried.  I have faithfully tracked everything in MFP for this entire journey and when the loss started to turn into a gain, I reduced the number of calories that I had for my daily goal.  It had made me focus a little more on the "extras" that I've allowed to slip back in.  Just a thought!

yes going back to MFP is a great idea too...I will go in there now and track my day so far.  Thanks!

I'm 5 yrs out and had a 90lb regain so I totally get where you are coming from. I joined Overeaters anonymous, got serious about it in Dec and have lost 50 of those lbs. if you want to chat send me a PM. 

You have already taken the hardest step by saying enough is enough and now I want to get back on track.  Here are some steps I hope will help you. They helped me...  Also, be sure and join the Back On Track Together group.  

Planning/Preparing

Remember when we were preparing for surgery?  How many meetings, classes and such did we attend?  We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success.  And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods.  Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every bad carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies, grains and fruits. 

Journaling

Get back to journaling.  This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life.  Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating.  It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband.  It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food.  Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health Tracker.  Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself.  Make them realistic and small.  Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat?, calories, and sugar. Important, vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan).

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea?  I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass.  So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer.  I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold.

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what, I kept moving.  If I could not go to the gym I would walk. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lifting weights. When I stopped, the weight started coming back.  So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV.  Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group.

Keep me posted on how you are doing

These are great...I appreciate you taking the time to put such detail...I am going to print this out and hang it up at my desk and at home. 

We all get busy and fall back on old habits from time to time and I found these helped me. I hope they help you....take it one day at a time and pick a couple at a time. If you try to make too many changes too fast we all know what will happen 

Keep me posted on how you are doing

5 day pouch test? Bleah!  You couldn't pay me to go back to that mess! It's more of a mental reset rather than a physical one. Going thru a shortened version of the stages we go thru after surgery is really not needed anymore, & we have a sleeve, not a pouch.

Skip the first 5 days & start from the 6th. Put protein first, get your carbs from veggies, get your water in, keep up with your vitamins & if you can get a little exercise in, nothing crazy, walking is a good start. Track, log & measure everything you eat, use an app like my fitness pal & get back to doing what you used to do to get the weight off.

Also take a look back as to why you gained the weight back, maybe you have an emotional attachment to food, or use it to cope with life stresses. Get into therapy or join a support group to help you break the attachment to food & they can help you find ways to cope so that you don't turn to food again.

Regain happens, life happens, it's a lifestyle change & it can be hard sometimes but I think you can make those positive changes that'll stay with you for life.